Mythological roles
Each of the Homestuck Kids and the Trolls has a mythological role, as hinted at during various points of the Homestuck story. All titles appear to consist of two components - a "class" and an "aspect." A title can be assembled from any combination of class and aspect - John in the kids' session is the Heir of Breath, while in the Trolls' session Tavros is the Page of Breath and Equius is the Heir of Void. Aspects are a form of generalized "Elements", in that they are primal forces of reality. Classes describe mechanics and intended roles, "channeling" the Aspect into possible action and powers. Classes come in active(-)/passive(+) pairs, with the active employing or affecting his aspect directly and for his own gain, and the passive being affected by his aspect, and sharing his actions with the team. Do note though, that literal interpretation of the aspect's/class' names is misleading, i.e. "Prince" actually means "Destroyer", and "Light" means "Fortune". Heroes with different aspects can end up with very similar powers depending on their class. The Life and Doom aspects may be radically different, but depending on the class their powers may end up being similar. Player abilities may also manifest in ways contrary to their aspect if they are heavily resistant to their true calling, or if an outside influence corrupts them. This happened to Rose Lalonde, and may have also occurred to other players in the Troll Session (as their entire society was corrupted by and ). The term " " can be used in lieu of the class when the speaker wishes to be generic, ie: John and Tavros are "Heroes of Breath". Both components of the title appear to have some mechanical effect on the game, although the precise nature of these mechanics has yet to be revealed, except for . Sburb may design planets with the titles in mind. For the kids one part seems to come from their aspect, while the other comes from their Associated Classical Element, or a force actively opposing it (Dark clouds in John's case and Frost in Jade's case). The Troll's lands mostly relate to their interests, but some show a clear connection to their titles. implies that every session will have a Hero of Time, and if the breeding duties are indeed linked to the Hero of Space they would be a constant in the game. Character Titles and Related Data Classes As stated above, uranianUmbra to Roxy Lalonde that there are passive classes (+) and active classes (-). She gives examples of this dichotomy with the Rogue/Thief pairing (Thieves steal to benefit themselves, Rogues are Robin Hoods), and the Bard/Prince pairing (Princes destroy their aspect or use it to destroy things, Bards allow the aspect to be destroyed, or bring destruction through the aspect). UU also explains that some of the classes tend to be assigned to males or females, some going as far as being exclusive to a certain gender. A few class mechanics were explicitly explained, others implied: Seer The Seer is a support and coordinator class. According to Aradia, they understand their aspect comprehensively, which makes them quite prescient in respect to their aspect (i.e., Terezi knows all consequences of individual actions, Rose knows the "most fortuitous path", and what happens in it). It could be surmised that the Seer class is defined as "one who benefits others with their knowledge pertaining to their aspect". Given the descriptions of Aradia and , one could also surmise that the Seer is a passive (+) class. Knight Aradia that Knights are warriors that exploit their aspect as a weapon. Dave has so far saved the lives of every single member of his team, such as resetting the timeline to save John and Jade, and rescuing Rose from the Draconian Dignitary near the end of act five. Karkat is less successful in the role despite his best efforts. He does, however, manage to defuse the , which would have doubtlessly killed one or more of his surviving friends. From this and the traditional definition of the role of a knight one could speculate that the Knight serves as a protector for other players in the session. Given these speculations, one could surmise that the definition of the Knight class is "one who manipulates their aspect as a weapon in order to protect others". It is unclear where that leaves them on the active/passive axis, although it may indicate that the Knight is a passive class. The Knight may also have something to do with breeding the Genesis Frog, since in both sessions so far, the Knight has assisted the Hero of Space in the breeding. The Knight seems to be a class usually or exclusively assigned to male players. Rogue/Thief This pair of passive/active classes deal with stealing, and turning the others' powers against them. Vriska, as the Thief of Light, is able to steal luck from her allies or enemies, and make herself luckier. Rogues would enhance their teammates, or their session with the stolen aspect in order to exploit it. These classes are often assigned to female players, but not exclusively. Bard/Prince These classes deal with destruction. The Prince, as the active, is literally simplified to "destroyer of aspect" or "one who destroys via aspect". Bards are somewhat stranger, in that they "allow destruction of aspect" or "invite destruction through aspect". Eridan, as the Prince of Hope, killed a lot of his teammates and destroyed the Matriorb, the trolls' hope of survival of their race. Gamzee, as the Bard of Rage, could enter some sort of berserk mode, causing deep fear in everyone around, and becoming exceptionally strong. Later on he allows his Rage to be destroyed by Karkat. Bards and Princes are exclusively assigned to male players. Witch Based on the actions of Jade (the Witch of Space) and Feferi (the Witch of Life), the definition of the Witch class seems to be "one who manipulates her aspect to the benefit of others". One could surmise that the Witch aspect is passive (+). Two facts to support this theory is that Jade shrunk the planets to escape the Scratch (therefore benefiting everyone inside them), while a doomed alternate timeline Feferi healed WV through a dream bubble. Witches are speculated to be a female exclusive class. Maid Based on the actions of Aradia (the Maid of Time) and Jane (the Maid of Life), one could surmise that the Maid class is defined as "countering/defending against an enemy's attack(s)". Aradia was able to freeze Jack, while Jane was able to heal herself after being stabbed. It is still unknown if Maid is a passive or active class. While the facts above point to active, it should be noted that Aradia was responsible for helping the other trolls defeat the Black King with her time travel abilities, and Jane stayed alive to help her teammates. Maids are speculated to be a female exclusive class. Mage Based on the actions of Sollux (the Mage of Doom) one can surmise that the Mage class may be related to the Seer class, as it also has something to do with a "deep understanding of the aspect". It may also mean "benefits himself/herself with knowledge pertaining to their aspect", though it should be noted that Sollux had concrete visions instead of just knowledge like Rose. Mage can also be synonymous to "given protection from their aspect's ill effects", assuming that Doom has something to do with calamity and death (Sollux had multiple dream selves and being able to exit the dream bubble). Heir The exact powers of an Heir are unknown, John (the Heir of Breath) however displays control over the Breeze. Based on the powers of John and Equius (the Heir of Void), a Heir may be "one under the protection of their aspect", or "one who protects themself by using their aspect". John was saved by the Breeze twice before he learned how to willingly use it, and Jack Noir was unable to pick up the source of his scent, as if the Breeze was protecting him. Equius (as well as his ancestor) was given the ability to not be noticed, which can be seen as an effective form of protection. Due to this speculation, one could surmise that the Heir is the passive/active counterpart of the Knight. Heirs are speculated to be a male exclusive class, and to be the 'Active' equivalent to Knights. Sylph The Sylph is a healer class. As a Sylph of Light, Aranea healed primarily by helping people to see things, both figuratively and literally. In the figurative sense, she focused on helping people to heal from psychological wounds. In the literal sense, she offers to restore Terezi's eyesight for her. Page The powers of the Page class are currently unknown. The Page of Breath, Tavros, was shown breathing with breath resembling the Breath symbol when going to kiss Vriska in a attempt to wake her up, how this may tie into his class is unknown. Aspects Breath The Breath aspect seems to have some relationship to John's power over The Breeze (such as The Windy Thing). It was never revealed whether Tavros has or could have had equivalent powers, but since he spent most of his time in the game asleep or otherwise passive, it seems unlikely that he was able to complete whatever makes those powers available. However, as shown , Tavros's breath appears as blue lines similar to the Breath symbol. The significance of this is currently unknown, but it could suggest that Breath also reflects speech (achieved by exhalation) and Tavros' Page class allowed him to negotiate more easily than other players, enabling him to befriend the Imps. The associated Denizen of the Breath aspect is Typheus, who presumably fills the role for all Breath players. Light The Light aspect is equivalent to "fortune", and involves power over luck and fortuitous outcomes. Two heroes of Light have been able to see into Magic Cue Balls. This may also mean that Light could mean "knowledge", in the way that it contrasts with the Void aspect. The third Light player, a Sylph, is known to heal with Light by helping the wounded to see how to heal themselves. This further reinforces the concept of Light as knowledge. The associated Denizen of the Light aspect is Cetus, who accordingly fills the role for all Light players. Time Time is one of the basic fabrics of Paradox Space. It is associated with the Timetables, time travel and exploits, and timeline maintenance in general. The Hero of Time also has a feature installed in their personal world in the Incipisphere: a large structure that will obliterate the alpha timeline and alternate it by rewinding everything to long before the game starts. It is a last resort, and would (ideally) result in better starting conditions. The associated Denizen of the Time aspect is Hephaestus, who presumably fills the role for all Time players. Space Space is the other basic fabric of Paradox Space. From Jade's display of powers, it seems that Space has to do with the size of things and their speed. It is also associated with the player whose Land contains their session's Forge. Both Kanaya and Jade live in similar homes, next to a Frog Temple, and their dream selves are both awake before entering the session. Having their planet's First Guardian as a guardian is also a parallel (Jade was effectively raised by Bec while Kanaya was 's "protégé"). Beyond this, both players of Space have been in charge of the breeding of the Genesis Frog. It is unclear how many of these parallels directly relate to the Space aspect. The associated Denizen of the Space aspect is Echidna, who accordingly fills the role for all Space players. Mind The Mind aspect seems to be related to thoughts and decisions of individuals. Terezi is able to what decisions will be made, and the outcomes of such decisions with her Seer of Mind powers. The Denizen associated to the Mind aspect is unknown. Heart UU relates that the Heart aspect is comparable to the "Soul", or essence of being. She also says that this aspect may cause splintering in the Hero's personality. This manifests in Dirk Strider's status as the Prince of Heart by having simultaneously awake real and dream selves, in addition to having created his auto-responder AI. This may also be related to the role-playing tendencies of Nepeta. The associated Denizen of the Heart aspect is Yaldabaoth, who presumably fills the role for all Heart players. Life The Life aspect is some kind of innate "life force" of living beings, necessary and sufficient for life to exist. Life players have been able to , and even . The Condesce was able to , and it is that her pre-Scratch self, is a Thief of Life. The associated Denizen of the Life aspect is Hemera, who presumably fills the role for all Life players. Void Void is associated with "the essence of lack, or nothingness" and "the obfuscation of knowledge, or its outright destruction". It seems to enable players to act without being seen or noticed, as evidenced by Darkleer's apparent ability to hide the Cue Ball from , Equius' similar talents during Vriska's struggles with the omniscient ballhead, and Roxy's occasional "dark patches" from the viewpoint of uranianUmbra. The associated Denizen of the Void aspect is Nyx, who presumably fills the role for all Void players. Hope As Light is associated with fortune, Hope seems to embody both its literal meaning and certain holy powers. The only hope-themed hero with awakened powers, Eridan, wields powerful attacks which seem to be based on so-called "white science". His title of Prince of Hope denotes both destroying hope itself, as he did by destroying the matriorb, and destruction through hope, which it is possible his white science actually was, especially since they were blasts of powerful white light described as 'holy' and 'sacred' by Kanaya, as well as Terezi's observation that the light smells "hopeful". Supporting the purported connection of white science and Hope powers is Doc Scratch's line that implies through the angels Eridan learned to "destroy hope with their light". Blood The Blood aspect, like some others, has not yet been shown to have a literal or clear-cut meaning. Common theories include anger or murderous desires, such as the word is used in "blood lust", or affinity, affection and unity in general, such as the word is used in "blood brothers". Neither theory is fully satisfactory, as the former seems similar to Rage and the latter similar to Heart. Karkat, the Knight of Blood, supports both theories. Though he possessed sufficient violent tendencies to merit the team being named "Adorabloodthirsty", at the same time he has a reputation among his friends for sympathy, and he is one of very few trolls in the series to never be on either side of a murder in the alpha timeline. Additional evidence favoring anger is its potential as having motivated many of his actions (like troll the kids), which ultimately furthered the timeline positively. Additional evidence for affection is its use in the form of moirallegiance with Gamzee in order to protect the other surviving trolls. Karkat's obtaiment of "cahoots" with Jack Noir (Spades Slick) in order to have him show his stabs to the establishment instead of his team may also be a form of this. It should also be noted that Karkat was able to unite the trolls despite their differences in order to reach their common goal: win Sgrub. A third possibility is Blood as interpreted to mean "genes", as Karkat assisted both sessions' heroes of Space in breeding the Genesis Frog, particularly where its genetic sequence was concerned. Karkat also has bright red blood, which is the same color as all humans' and carapaces' blood but a completely aberrant one among trolls. It is unknown to what degree his blood color is related to his aspect, but it may be some kind of constant for Blood players, much like the constants in living quarters and other accommodations for Space ones. It also helped establish his cahoots with Jack, as their blood colors are the same. Another possibility for the blood aspect could be that it stands for alliences and social order, given that Karkat is the one who united his friends to play SGRUB. Rage The Rage aspect is tied to the emotion of anger. Gamzee, the Bard of Rage, was able to channel his anger causing him to enter a "Berserker" mode. Doom Doom could perhaps have something to do with the destruction of a planet that is ultimately caused by playing Sburb. Sollux, as the Mage of Doom, was inherently aware of the impending destruction that would follow the trolls' playing the game. Whether or not they have any influence of the outcome is up to speculation, but their knowledge of it seems to be more comprehensive than that of most players. Speculation In , Kanaya speculates that Skaia assigns titles to players to challenge them, rather than to suit their strengths. This would certainly explain some of the apparent inversions, such as Rose being the Seer of Light despite her fascination with darkness and horror, and Jade's title as the Witch of Space despite her life never leaving her small island. However, her theory should be taken with a grain of salt, considering the titles of a lot of the players match them perfectly. It could be speculated that players are meant to "grow into" their roles; that is, when they first begin the session their title and its duties force them outside their comfort zone and seem very unsuited, but a fully realized Hero has matured into the role the game has assigned them. Trivia According to Andrew Hussie, other characters have also assumed these titles, or otherwise will when they ascend to the God Tiers. *Nicolas Cage is the Nick of Time *fedorafreak is the Gent of Piss *Andrew Hussie is the Huss of Lips **And, simultaneously, the Waste of Space. **As well as the Prince of Ships. In Problem Sleuth, Problem Sleuth obtains the title by saving a universe. It is the only known "mythological role" outside of Homestuck. Category:Homestuck Category:Homestuck Concepts